Francesca Aweeka, PharmD

Biography

Dr. Aweeka has >25 years of experience as a clinical pharmacologist focusing on HIV, malaria and tuberculosis treatments. She is interested in deciphering pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) distinctions for vulnerable populations and investigating clinically relevant drug-drug interactions in patients residing in either resource replete or resource limited settings. The Drug Research Unit (DRU, also known as the Global Health Pharmacology Laboratory) for which Dr. Aweeka serves as Director, is recognized for state of the art analytical techniques for quantification of HIV, malaria, TB and oncology drugs in plasma, dried blood spots or within target cells or tissues and these methods are used to support numerous research investigations. Dr. Aweeka serves as PI on an NIH RO1 on PK/PD of malaria and antiretroviral drugs in HIV co-infected children and women in Uganda. The DRU serves as a Pharmacology Core for DAIDS programs; e.g. AIDS Clinical Trials Group and the Center for AIDS Research (supporting >30 NIH studies). Dr. Aweeka has completed the Mentor Development Program and is willing to mentor faculty, fellows, residents and students interested in an academic research career.